(Used to be) Live from the Magic - Christmas Cruise 2008 - now with pictures pg4

[WDWLVR]

Thanks for sharing your trip report live! We did a Christmas cruise back in 2004 and loved it. Enjoy the rest of your trip!

 

[podsnel]

It is so cold and icy here- I am so envious of your family!! We saw Beverly Hills Chihuaha when we were on our cruise in Nov- it played in the Walt disney Theatre, DS9 & I loved it!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Monday night, continued:

Dinner tonight was in Animator’s Palate. The seas were rough, 8 – 13 ft., so quite a few people were feeling the sea. But it’s pirate night, so we must press on! I brought costumes for the boys, but neither were feeling well. In fact, DS11 took a short nap after taking some Dramamine, and then he went off to OQ. DS12 wouldn’t take anything and he continued feeling poorly. He tried to go to dinner with us, but as our server mentioned, AP is the worst when the seas are high. DS12 went back to the cabin to lie down again.

Dinner was quick. Fernando and Gary are doing a decent job with our dinners, and we appreciate the timely service. I ordered off the lighter fare menu for dinner. But it is pirate night and I’ve been waiting several months to try fajitas and crepes at the pirate buffet, so I needed to save room!

We opted to see Beverly Hills Chihuahua in the Buena Vista Theater, so we went back to the cabin for a bit and got DS12 to take some Dramamine. Then we stopped by the shore excursions desk to get information about going into Cozumel on our own, dropped off some fish extender gifts, and then met DS12 for the movie. By the time the movie was over, the seas had settled a bit, or else the Dramamine we had taken was still in effect.

The Pirate Party was underway when the movie let out, so DH and I went up to our favorite Pirate Party spot on Deck 10 – just off the starboard stairs coming up from by Pinnochio’s. There weren’t many people on Deck 10 yet, and Deck 9 didn’t seem overly full, either. Even when it was time for fireworks (spectacular!), Deck 10 wasn’t jammed with people… but that’s probably because they were all already in line for the buffet! I was able to get my fajitas, and then we walked down to the Quiet Cove to get a table to sit at as they had not yet opened the deck on starboard side by Mickey’s pool. By the time we were ready for crepes, though, that area was open so we were able to enjoy a bit of dessert. The boys didn’t go to the party, but I brought them back a few marshmallows.

When we got back to the room, DS12 was heading to bed, and DS11 was crashed on our bed, so we woke him up so he could get his bath. We set the clocks back an hour tonight, so it didn’t seem quite so late going to bed. I did a terrible thing, though – I checked my work email after posting / checking the DISBoards, and sure enough, I wish I hadn’t. I burned up the rest of my internet time so I will have to get some more to continue posting our trip report Live. Off to sleep – tomorrow is Cozumel.

 

[scottishwee35]

Hi Cindy

Good to heard from you and sorry about big wave and hope your boys are feeling better today?

looking forward to read more story

Is there any interpreter??

Have a lovely Xmas

and take care

Scottishwee35

 

[jd99]

Great trip report! Thanks for sharing.

When you go to Palo, can you find out if Marco is still there? My wife is asking me every day if I have heard anything about him from the DISboards.

Thanks!

I'm not the OP but I can tell you what we found out on our Nov. sailing. We were told that Marco was promoted to Palo Manager on the Wonder. He was our server a couple of cruises ago and he was serving as Manager at Palo on the Magic during our Mexican Riviera sailing. In Nov. our server told us that he was now on the Wonder. I'm betting he is going to be the manager on whatever ship DCL ultimately places in the Med. Just a guess...

 

[lbgraves]

While I am happy for Marco's success...we will miss him terribly on The Magic.

 

[TheDisneyGirl02]

Thank you so much for posting!!!! Sounds like you're having a great trip!!!!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Tuesday – Cozumel

When we planned this trip, we decided to keep it a surprise from our children. Because of that, we were not able to ask them what they might or might not want to do for our Port days. I didn’t want to schedule much because I wanted this vacation to be a vacation, not a tour of the Caribbean. But when one of the DISers asked about putting a group together to do a Dolphin Encounter at Chankanaab Park, I jumped at the chance because DS11 has loved dolphins since he was a wee one.

We set our clocks back an hour, so when I woke up at 7 a.m., it was really 6 a.m. which was nice for me to go back to sleep! We were awakened at 7:30 or so by Christiaan making the announcement that as soon as the Mexican authorities had cleared the ship, folks could start disembarking. We were to meet our DIS group at 9:30 to go over together for our 1 p.m. Dolphin Encounter.

We had breakfast at Topsiders (as usual) and then took a short walk on Deck 4 to show DS12 how we would go when we got off the ship and caught a cab. We got ready for the day, wearing our swimsuits and taking our water shoes with us. We met our group and then left the ship together. We were able to fit our group of 18 into two taxis at $22 per cab.

We checked in at Chankanaab Park, got our wristbands, then checked in again at the Dolphin Encounter desk and got our wristbands for that as well. We then had 2 1/2 hours until our encounter would begin. The use of lockers was included in our group rate, so we were able to put our stuff in the lockers and then explore the park. There is not a lot to see there, or do, unless you want to just enjoy the beach, but they do have a pretty good pool, only it was cold (but that didn’t stop DS11 from getting in, but DS12 only got in to his knees). We walked through the Mayan house and the botanical gardens trail which were nice enough.

Oh – when we first arrived at the park, there were a few men with parrots and iguanas (iguani?). One of them put a parrot on one of the little girl’s head, but then he wanted $5 to take a picture of it. Oops – someone had already gotten a photo! Oh well. While we were walking through the gardens, there was an iguana, so we made a game of trying to get our picture with the iguana for free  It didn’t really work, but it was fun.

The kids were hungry, so we got them each a pack of Cheetos. Here’s a lesson – when in a foreign country, be sure to read the label for words like chiles… these were spicy! One of the other DISers had gotten some cheese nachos and shared with DS11.

It was finally time for our encounter. We met up in a designated area and then were divided into groups. Because we were a group of 18, we were on a platform by ourselves. We had an educational / instructional talk, got our life vests, and then went out to get into the water. The Encounter is conducted on a platform that is about three feet wide and the water is about 3-feet deep until a current hits which can make the water a bit higher and harder to stand on the platform. But there is a chain link fence right behind you, so you can hold onto it to help with balance.

The water was cold getting in, but warmed up pretty quickly. The trainer introduced us to Pakal, our dolphin for the day. He is 16 months old, the youngest of their dolphins. We got to touch him on the back and belly, and then we started the best part – where we each had a turn to kiss the dolphin and have him shake hands with us. It was really amazing to watch the delight on the children’s faces as they interacted with the dolphin.

One thing I really liked is that they checked the pictures on the dock and if someone’s didn’t turn out well, they let that person have another go so they could get a good photo.

After we finished our interaction time, we were taken to a room to watch the video which was pretty good. While we were glad to have seen it, we weren’t interested in purchasing it. We were taken to the area where we could see our pictures and order which ones we wanted.

Then a quick change and out to find a taxi to bring us back. One of the families left quicker than the rest of us, so we got a taxi for 13 and headed back to the port. We made it back around 3:45 p.m., plenty of time before all-aboard at 4:45.

 

[PBF199]

This is totaly insane! I'm getting overhyped for this trip! we sail on 1/10/09 so please give as many up to date tips as you can!!
Dude!! You are so flirting with my happiness right now.
Living vicariously through you is perfect for being 2 weeks out from our sail date.

ROCKIN!!!

 

[TheDisneyGirl02]

Oh – when we first arrived at the park, there were a few men with parrots and iguanas (iguani?). One of them put a parrot on one of the little girl’s head, but then he wanted $5 to take a picture of it. Oops – someone had already gotten a photo! Oh well. While we were walking through the gardens, there was an iguana, so we made a game of trying to get our picture with the iguana for free  It didn’t really work, but it was fun.

OMG! I had my picture taken with that parrot and iguana! I didn't know it was $5.00!!!!

 

[MagicMe]

OMG! I had my picture taken with that parrot and iguana! I didn't know it was $5.00!!!!

Yup! $5 for you and $5 for Nana!!! But it was so worth it!!! Between that and the Dolphin Encounter - all things she's never done before (and she's 76 - at the time of our cruise).

We loved the DE! My Mom (the aforementioned 76 year old) had a lot of trouble on the platform. The waves kept threatening to push her off the platform. She held on to a rope off the pier just to keep from inadvertantly swimming with Regina (our dolphin).

 

[TheDisneyGirl02]

Yup! $5 for you and $5 for Nana!!! But it was so worth it!!! Between that and the Dolphin Encounter - all things she's never done before (and she's 76 - at the time of our cruise).

We loved the DE! My Mom (the aforementioned 76 year old) had a lot of trouble on the platform. The waves kept threatening to push her off the platform. She held on to a rope off the pier just to keep from inadvertantly swimming with Regina (our dolphin).

It was worth it! That picture is priceless!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Tuesday, Continued

We opted to not do any shopping in Cozumel, so we had reboarded a bit earlier than we had expected, which gave us time to get our laundry done before dinner. Deck 6 had several washers that were done but just sitting there, and a few dryers were open. I waited to see if anyone would come change them while DH went to Deck 7 to see what the situation was up there. There were three empty washers there, so we went to Deck 7 for this round of laundry.

While the laundry was going, we enjoyed watching people reboard not just the Magic, but also the Carnival Holiday. The two ships got into a bit of a horn-war with the Magic obviously winning  Time came for all-aboard and we had the general announcement for a few folks to hurry up and get back. We watched as a couple came up being carried on one of those bicycle things, and then another guy came running. Folks were cheering from both the Magic and the Holiday. Carnival’s ship left first, and they had arrived after us. DH enjoyed watching the activity for leaving, and then he went up to Deck 10 to watch the Magic pull out of dock.

The laundry finally got done, I had a quick shower, and we were off to dinner in Lumiere’s for theme night. The boys both joined us; DS12 loves the bread of French dinner night. DH and I ordered the rigatoni from the vegetarian selection which was delicious, but filling. I’ll be posting food pictures over on the food-picture thread.

After dinner, DH and I walked around Deck 4 in the Atrium for a bit. He took his DVC hat to get a pin, and we also collected our Captain’s Log as we had not gotten one earlier in the cruise. While we were there, we looked for the opportunity to take our “bonus” photo for the digital scavenger hunt – a little girl in a princess costume getting an autograph from the same princess. Cinderella was down for a long time and I felt like I was stalking her  Snow White came out on Deck 4 and was just hanging out. A few folks approached her and soon there was a short line. I got my picture made with her, and told her how much I enjoyed how she interacted with the young guests. She said she had lots of experience from talking to the Dwarves.

The ship was rocking, but I was in search of a slice of crème brulee cheesecake that I knew they were serving in Parrot Cay. I didn’t ask for one at dinner because I wanted the crème brulee, and I figured I could just get some at Topsiders. Nope, no crème brulee cheesecake in Topsiders. So I went down to Ocean Quest to see what DS11 was up to and ended up staying for a while talking to Sharon (usually works Oceaneers Lab) and Jaclyn. Then I wandered through the shops for a bit while the rest of the ship was either eating dinner, watching Bolt 3-D (which reports say was a bit tough in the sea conditions we had) or had already retired to their rooms from the sea motion.

I went by Parrot Cay to see if I could beg a slice of the cheesecake. Sure enough – success! only they didn’t give me a fork, so I was off in search of a fork. I came up with one in Topsiders, and went back to the cabin where I enjoyed every bit of that hard-earned dessert while sitting on the verandah!

It wasn’t long until the motion of the ship was making me overly sleepy, so I got ready for bed and was zzz’ing in no time. DS12 and DH also went to bed, but it was just 10:30 and DS11 had a midnight curfew. What to do? What to do?? I finally roused myself enough at 11:30 to just go down and fetch him even though it was early still. I just didn’t want to sleep without him successfully into the cabin.

There were a lot of kids in OQ, so I figured the counselors would be glad to have one less. He wasn’t doing anything anyway, so I had him just come on back to the cabin and go to bed.

Wednesday is Grand Cayman day, but the seas are slowing us down so we won’t arrive until later.

 

[nzdisneymom]

Thanks for all the interest in our trip! If there is anything you want to know, just ask and I'll try to find out.

I'm also hopeful that I'll be able to upload some pictures later today or tomorrow - the internet connection has been great for us, so we'll see how it continues.

We're just pulling into Grand Cayman now so we're off to get tendering tickets.

Merry Christmas Eve to all who celebrate!

 

[TheDisneyGirl02]

Thanks for all the interest in our trip! If there is anything you want to know, just ask and I'll try to find out.

I'm also hopeful that I'll be able to upload some pictures later today or tomorrow - the internet connection has been great for us, so we'll see how it continues.

We're just pulling into Grand Cayman now so we're off to get tendering tickets.

Merry Christmas Eve to all who celebrate!

Can't wait to see the pictures!!!!

Enjoy Grand Cayman!!!

Merry Christmas to you and your family!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Wednesday – Grand Cayman day

The seas kept us from arriving at Grand Cayman on schedule, so I made a spa appointment for Wednesday morning to get the iontherme treatment. The art auction offered $30 off the treatment which I mentioned when I scheduled. My appointment was for 9:15 a.m. which would give me time to do that and still be ready to get off the ship in plenty of time. Of course I slept til Mickey called at 8:45 this morning which made me rush a bit to wake up and get out the door. DH went to run while the boys went off to Ocean Quest for a bit. As it has turned out, DS11 has spent the whole day in OQ while DS12 has spent most of the day watching classic animated movies in the cabin.

After my spa treatment, I met up with Tinkerbell_29 and her family in the Quiet Cove. We chatted about our Tuesday evening experiences, and then I went in search of a late breakfast. DH had made his way to Topsiders around the same time; inside was packed solid, so we found a table outside. The wind was strong and kept blowing our food around our trays.

We arrived in Grand Cayman around 11:15 and tendering started at 11:30. The Walt Disney Theater was packed. DH and I waited about 45 minutes and then decided to bag the day in Grand Cayman. We were only planning to do some shopping, but not for anything in particular. So instead, we had a nice lunch in Lumiere’s which is something we were wanting to do anyway. Our server for the meal was celebrating his birthday today so we sang happy birthday to him along with our tablemates.

Shortly after lunch, they announced all-ashore without any waiting, so we debated going or not. We finally decided to go since they were loading a tender right below our cabin and we were still packed up for the trip out. So with no waiting, we boarded the tender and went over to the island. We talked with BearFan who we saw at the WDT while we were waiting for tendering and she said they got to go about 15 minutes after we had left. There were so many folks waiting to tender but we think DCL did a good job of handling it; there were “resource allocation” issues since we had arrived late and there were five other cruise ships in port today.

We exited the tender and followed the crowds just to see what there was to see. We found a Cayman Islands souvenir shop and got a thimble and spoon for our boys as they collect those, and then we went in search of the Del Sol store. Of course we didn’t have our shopping guide map with us, but we saw another passenger who had a Del Sol bag so I asked her where it was. We found it and DH got a new shirt, and then we headed back to the ship.

There was a tender waiting for us, so we didn’t have to wait long for the ride back to the ship.

 

[Sophie_2003]

Enjoying the TR very much. Merry xmas to all Disers on board!

 

[frdeb1999]

Loving your report!! So glad your having a wonderful time!

 

[MN Dis Fans]

Merry Christmas!!!!!!!!!!
Have been reading your trip report with a bit of jealousy. I wish it was us!
Oh well, we are scheduled to do it next X-Mas (2009).
What exciting activities are you doing today?

By the way, we're scheduled to cruise with you folks on the Baltic Summer 2010 It seems so far away, it's hard to get to excited about this one just yet.

Anyway, if you run into Pubmaster Jay, can you tell him Paul from MN says hello. (The guy that gave him a real hard time about the lack of Olympics coverage in Diversions last August!) My DW & I also saw him last month on the Wonder.
Thx.

Enjoy the rest of your cruise; can't wait to read more about it!

 

[nzdisneymom]

Wednesday did not seem like Christmas Eve, yet there were plenty of holiday happenings beginning around the ship, and I had some things to tend to in the cabin without the prying eyes of children. Yet DS12 was firmly planted on the couch watching animated classics, so I figured I would wait until later to take care of what I needed to do.

I had plans to attend the art auction again, or at least to check out the preview. But along the way, I went into the DVC presentation to see if the folks we’d been talking to at lunch had gone in. I didn’t see them but there were other DISers there and of course I wanted my chance to win some onboard credit. Didn’t work out, but I don’t mind doing the presentation because I learn new stuff about our DVC membership every time. One of the other DISers that was waiting in the Walt Disney Theater for tendering said they were called about 15 minutes after we had left.

I did a bit of wandering around the ship, a bit aimlessly, something I used to do for much of the cruise, but this time I’ve been busy with various activities. Then time to get ready for dinner – it was in Animator’s Palette for theme night. I got ready a bit early and went down to the Promenade Lounge to listen to Calypso Magic with their pre-dinner music. I’m telling you – this duo is entertaining and has the right blend of songs in their sets. They definitely fit well with the Magic. Tinkerbell_29 and her family came down where we caught up on the day.

DS12 and DH were already at our table when I got to Animator’s Palette. Our table is right by one of the main screens so it was nice to be able to see the changes of the various characters. We enjoyed our dinner but got done before time for the show, so we went ahead and left. I wanted to go to the family cabaret – John Charles, musical comedy – at 7:30 and then to see Bolt at 8:15, so we didn’t want to be delayed from dinner. I have to say again that Gary and Fernando did a great job on getting us in and out at dinners. Last night was probably the longest at 1:10 for the whole thing.

I was a bit surprised that DH wanted to go to the comedy show with me, but we had a great time. John Charles plays a variety of songs, mostly requests from the audience, and also makes up songs according to the guests. He did a hilarious impression of Hannah Montana. He ended with The Flintstones, Spongebob Squarepants, and the Mickey Mouse Club.

We made it to Bolt a few minutes early, found DS12 was there keeping a spot for us. We got our 3-D glasses and got situated. The movie was great! I’m not sure I’m going to be keen on 3-D, so I hope that the digital 3-D will still be shown in “regular.” We saw preview for Pixar’s UP which looks fun, too.

When the movie was over, I locked everyone out of the cabin while I took care of what I needed to do. Then I left a note for DH to meet me in Promenade Lounge. I checked on DS11 in the OQ and gave him an 11:15 curfew. He wanted later but I knew I needed him to get some rest tonight.

We did a Secret Santa with our DIS Meet thread, so I delivered our gifts, and gifts were delivered for the boys.

I got my first cup of hot chocolate for this trip, and it felt appropriate for Christmas Eve. The restaurants were handing out cookies and milk (for Santa) but I sure saw a lot of Dads (and some moms) eating them! They were sugar cookies and yummy. Calypso Magic was just about to start their last set for the night when we got there, so I chatted with Lynley for a few minutes until they were ready to play. DH came down, and then Tinkerbell_29 and family joined us. Calypso Magic made up songs about us and where we’re from, etc., which was so fun and entertaining. BearFan and her DH stopped by for a bit, too.

And before we knew it, it was 11:15 and time to head for zzzz’land. After all, Santa won’t stop if you’re awake! The boys were in the room on time and getting ready for bed (yay!) and soon we were asleep, all snug in our beds, with visions of Mickey dancin’ in our heads.